Donald Trump's Speech in Iraq: Losing Control of His Own Agenda

President Trump at Al Asad AFB

President Donald Trump gave two speeches yesterday at Al Asad Air Base in Iraq. Having been criticized for not visiting overseas service personnel, Mr. Trump apparently realized that it was high time for him to do so. His first speech, a typical Trump extemporization, praised and thanked the service personnel, spread praise around to the military commanders who were present, boasted of the new equipment they had received, and told them that “It’s because of your sacrifice that America’s families can celebrate in safety and in peace.” He named the various units present and gave their commanders’ names. That was all fine. Much of it was quite charming. More important, he gave a long-overdue explanation of his Syria policy. Unfortunately, by getting unduly political, he then distracted the audience from his main purpose. Let’s look at how he did it.

Having been criticized for ordering a precipitous withdrawal from Syria, Mr. Trump hit the issue directly: “Our presence in Syria was not open-ended, and it was never intended to be permanent.  Eight years ago, we went there for three months, and we never left.  But now we’re doing it right, and we’re going to finish it off.” He assured his audience that the withdrawal would be careful and measured. This was an important point that he needed to emphasize. He explained it pretty well.

This important point got lost, however, because he made two unforced errors in this speech. First, he falsely boasted that he had signed the first military pay raise in years: “You haven’t gotten one in more than 10 years — more than 10 years.  And we got you a big one.  I got you a big one.  I got you a big one.  (Applause.)” Actually, the military had received raises every year. Worse, he falsely implied that the 2.9% pay raise was actually 10%: “I said, ‘No.  Make it 10 percent.  Make it more than 10 percent.’” (Today’s military personnel are well-educated, and they will notice if their checks aren’t 10% bigger next year.)

Second, Mr. Trump politicized the speech by talking about his conflict with Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi about the border wall:

“But you gave me an idea, just looking at this warrior group.  I think I’ll say, ‘I don’t want the wall.’  And then they’re going to give it to me.  (Laughter.)  I’ve figured out the solution, First Lady.  (Laughter.)  Tell Nancy Pelosi, ‘I don’t want the wall.’  ‘Oh, we want the wall.’  And then we get the wall.  (Laughter and applause.)  That’s another way of doing it.  (Applause.)  That’s another way of doing it.”

On the one hand, Mr. Trump had a conservative audience who, probably, largely agreed with his immigration policy. On the other hand, however, this made the speech political, diverting attention from his point. Mr. Trump quickly returned to making points about the military mission, but it was too late. The press quickly noted that this was not a suitable forum for political comments. As a result, his main message got muddled. He had a chance to defend his decision to withdraw from Syria. He took advantage of that chance and offered a good defense of his policy. So far, so good. But, unable to restrain himself, he created a distraction. 

The side that sets the agenda usually wins the debate. Donald Trump, who is often so good at driving the national agenda, instead tossed the agenda to his critics. His reasoned policy defense, which otherwise made quite a bit of sense, got lost in a morass that he created himself.

Of course, this is not the first time that Mr. Trump has politicized a non-political event. Remember his Boy Scout Speech?

What Is Wrong with Absolute Political Promises? George H. W. Bush, “Read my Lips,” and the Plot to Murder the Apostle Paul

 George H. W. Bush

The passing of former president George H. W. Bush gives us a chance to think about lessons learned and opportunities missed. Bush’s most famous speech line came in his Acceptance Speech at the 1988 Republican National Convention. Having served as Ronald Reagan’s Vice President for eight years, Bush had been a shoo-in favorite for the Republican presidential nomination. By 1988, the Republican Party’s formerly complex economic policy had come down to opposing taxes, especially taxes that might bother rich people. Accordingly, Bush mentioned taxes seven times during the speech. Bush's most famous line was also his most unwise: “My opponent won't rule out raising taxes. But I will. And the Congress will push me to raise taxes, and I'll say no, and they'll push, and I'll say no, and they'll push again, and I'll say, to them, 'Read my lips: No new taxes.'" He later found it necessary to raise taxes, and some people think this is not only why he lost his 1992 reelection campaign, but also why Republicans have been reluctant to compromise ever since.

Read my lips: No new taxes. That was an impossible promise to keep. In general, I’m leery of politicians who make absolute promises. When I think of them, I’m reminded of a Bible story.

According to the Acts of the Apostles, Book 23, a group of religious conservatives, who found the apostle Paul’s preaching to be disturbing, swore a murderous oath that they would neither eat nor drink until Paul was dead. Paul’s nephew got wind of the plot and informed a Roman officer, who assigned 470 soldiers, no fewer, to guard Paul. They escorted Paul safely to the governor, Felix, for trial; Felix ruled that Paul should be sent to Rome so the Emperor could judge his case.

I have often wondered what happened to the cruel but foolish men who swore neither to eat nor drink until Paul was dead. Once their mission failed, they faced a choice: they could break their oath by eating and drinking, or they could die of thirst and starvation. The Bible doesn’t say which. They had sealed themselves up into a difficult situation, had they not?

A promise never to raise taxes sounds good, and conservative voters will like hearing it. But there are many times that taxes need to be raised. Government revenues might be insufficient to fund necessary programs. The government might need to raise taxes to cool an inflationary economy. In Bush’s case, a contributing factor was that Republicans did not control both houses of Congress, and Bush needed to offer a compromise to get Democrats to agree to the budget. Congress did push him to raise taxes, just as he had warned, and he caved. Really, what else could he have done?

Bush did not agree to a large increase in taxes. Most people probably didn’t even notice: I certainly did not when I filed my tax return. Most people did know, however, that he had broken his unreasonable and unrealistic promise.

Be careful what you say when you’re running for office. What you say might come back to haunt you. Candidates can make all kinds of unrealistic promises: presidents and other government officials must deal with the real world.

By the way, I heard President George H. W. Bush speak in person at a 2002 rhetoric conference at the Bush Presidential Library. Conference organizer Martin Medhurst found Bush in his office and brought him down to meet with us for a few minutes. He gave an articulate, charming, and complimentary talk. I was lucky enough to expand my own brief talk at the conference into a book chapter.

It really is a shame that a single unwise statement, drafted by a speechwriter (in this case, Peggy Noonan) who would never need to accept responsibility for what she wrote, came to define an entire presidency. It would be more proper for us to remember Bush for saying, in the same speech, “I want a kinder, and gentler nation.” That was more typical of his real feelings.

But, then again, words make a difference, don’t they? And no matter who wrote it, Bush, and not his staff, was responsible for making his unwise, absolute, and unkeepable promise. 

Image: Official White House portrait via Wikimedia Commons